War Stories
by Human Customs Still Elude Me
Summary: The Crystal Gems have always been there, and they always will be. The world may not know them very well, but they know the world-after all, they have saved it a huge amount of times. And now, long after the first war for this planet, Homeworld is slowly returning-and with them comes a new war. These are the stories of the two wars for Earth. (One-shots about Crystal/Homeworld Gems)
1. Living Hell

Garnet doesn't get emotional.

Even when she Sees the death of her friends, she remains stoic as ever. Likewise, in reality, when Pearl disappears in a flash of blue smoke, it doesn't bother her...visibly. When Amethyst falls, she only now allows herself to appear concerned. But when she looks down and sees the broken remains of a tiny pink gem on the ground at her feet, she drops to her knees. The ground shook around her. It was happening.

"No. No no no no no...This can't be happening! I-it's too early!"

Whose voice was that? It didn't matter. Their gem shattered too. It didn't take long. Garnet was alone

Then the huge thing, the...abomination before her started to glow. Her respective halves fell to the ground.

Ruby fell first. Something huge fell on her-it didn't matter what it was. Sapphire was alone. Everything was gone.

The ground started to break apart. Then the fires started. The entire world shattered into millions of tiny pieces. The last thing Sapphire saw before her gem shattered, joining the Cluster, was a huge, achingly familiar eye opening before her.

And then...

She joined the people she loved.

* * *

"Garnet!"

"...Garnet? Are you alright?"

Garnet opened her eyes, closed her third. That was just a vision. But...how? It completely surprised her, came unbidden, took her off guard...

She looked up from the ground. A two-month pregnant Rose stands before her, worry showing in every line of her face. Pearl stood nearby, Amethyst tucked neatly under her arm.

"Garnet? You looked like you were...are you...well, are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine..." Garnet manages to say, although the pain from her injuries in the Vision still seems to linger, both physical and emotional. Her hands are trembling as she realizes that, for the first time in almost three thousand years, she had thought a Vision was reality.

Rose, eyes widening slightly, took a step forward, reaching out with her right hand, her fingers just barely brushing Garnet's face. "Garnet...you're crying."

Garnet took a step back, as if in disbelief, stood still for a second, then darted for the warp pad. She warped to the only place she can think of-the sky arena. Rose's voice just barely reached her ears, calling her name, Pearl giving an exclamation of disbelief, Amethyst saying something indistinguishable from the sound of the Warp Pad activating.

* * *

Rose stood still for a moment. Garnet never acted like this. She was kind, she was embarrassed when she did something wrong, but...She only cried when something truly horrible happened. Although...maybe she's better at hiding her emotions than Rose thought.

Amethyst was the first to speak. "What the heck?"

"I don't know, Amethyst...this has never happened before..." Pearl responded, her voice sounding less worried than confused.

Rose lowered her hand from her vague attempt to stop the gem from leaving. "I think I know where she went. I'm going to talk to her." In response to this, Pearl gave a small jump, dropping Amethyst to the ground. "But-Rose! You know she gets when she's having a hard time!"

Rose turned to face the smaller gem. "I know. I've known her a good seven thousand years, Pearl. But I also know that she could get hurt." Her eyes softened, the cold, overprotective light fading. "I'll be fine."

Pearl blinked, looking at the floor. "Er...Sorry, I-"

Rose was already gone.

* * *

The sky arena was decrepit. Rose looked up at the crumbling diamonds hovering in the air-and turned away, swiftly walking up the stairs. As she rounded the bend into the flat, open area, both her guesses and her fears were confirmed.

Garnet was leaning against one of the pillars, knees pulled up to her chest. The evening light cast deep shadows, almost hiding Garnet from Rose's sight.

She walked up to Garnet, and paused when she realized that Garnet was whispering a jerky, awkward conversation that barely went past her own words.

"That had to have been Rose's son."

"Well, yeah, but that's the only time that-"

"Ruby, I-I thought that it was real. How could I have."

"That's the farthest ahead that we've seen. That won't happen until hell freezes over!"

"You've met me, Ruby-"

Rose judged this a good time to intervene. Garnet's outline was flickering. She was clearly struggling to stay fused.

"Garnet."

The fusion started and looked up. Rose realized that her eyes were uncovered-probably Ruby's fault. "R-Rose. I'm...sorry, I-"

Rose knelt next to Garnet, putting her hands on her shoulders. "Why on Earth are you apologizing? You saw something horrible. That's no reason to be apologetic."

Garnet blinked, her eyes damp. Maybe it was just a trick of the light, but she looked like she had seen something that shook her to the core. If Ruby and Sapphire were conscious enough to use her as a mouthpiece...then this was something to worry about.

"I...it had to be over a decade from now. I-I thought it was real. Everyone and everything just-suddenly-that thing, that abomination, just-It was hell. Complete hell."

Rose sat and listened as Garnet regained her composure and explained her Vision. How it came unbidden. How she panicked. How she actually felt the pain of her injuries, how she still felt it a tiny bit, even after the Vision ended.

Rose didn't try to say anything. She would ask more later. Now she just reached out, resting her hand on Garnet's cheek as she started to cry once more. Garnet had thought talking would make it better. Instead it made it ten times worse.

For once, Rose wasn't sure what to say to comfort her friend. She remained silent, and just reached out her other hand. She pulled Garnet close-she could feel Garnet's shock, how her shoulders stiffened, relaxed, and started shaking.

On that quiet night, long before Homeworld started watching Earth once more, before Lapis Lazuli gave up her freedom once more, before Peridot was willing to talk...

Garnet sobbed silently into Rose Quartz's shoulder for the first and last time. It felt like an eternity to Rose. She had never seen Garnet this upset before, never seen her emotions shatter like this. It scared her, really. But she didn't mind.

Twelve long years later, as the small version of the Cluster stood before her, she was suddenly reminded of that night. A month or two after that, Peridot looked up at the Crystal gems, said she was willing to discuss the Cluster...

Residual fear crept into Garnet's mind.

* * *

 **I've only seen one or two fics based around Rose and Garnet, so here ya go! Unlike my other SU fic, this is mostly canon.**

 **I cannot write feels to save my life.**


	2. Probability

**Wow. I love writing about Garnet.**

 **Anyway, I loved Too Far and I'm really looking forward to the inevitable Peridot/Garnet episode. And yes, I've turned this into a group of one-shots. Mostly because I don't want my profile to get cluttered.**

* * *

Garnet stood next to the barn, staring into space. She was listening, sure, but she knew she wouldn't be needed for exactly twenty-three minutes. The only things she was helpful for was carrying things too big for the others, the occasional odd job for something small(she was faster), and the very rare occasion where Pearl had her do some quick calculations for the computer programming in the Drill. After all, she was good at math that was generally considered difficult. She just didn't enjoy it much.

"Garnet?"

Pearl's voice struck Garnet by surprise. Had it been that long already? She checked the tiny clock on the wall barn swiftly. No, it had only been three minutes. Maybe she didn't check thoroughly enough.

"Yes, Pearl?"

Pearl fumbled with a tiny machine in her hands for a moment. "Could you help me out on this? I found a bit of old gem tech in my room last night that will come in handy. I'm not old enough to have existed during the time this was in use. Could you...?"

Garnet blinked, taken slightly by surprise. "Erm, maybe. Could you...?" Garnet reached out with her right hand. The small bit of archaic technology dropped onto Sapphire's gem with a dull clink. She held it up a bit more, looked at for a moment, and handed it back to Pearl. "That's broken. It's missing most of the key components and wouldn't work even if it were intact."

Pearl blinked. "Oh. Erm, thank you..." She went back into the small barn, seeming mildly confused about how Garnet had known that.

Garnet went back to leaning against the barn. Pearl and Peridot were in the Barn rebuilding what the out-of-control drill had broken. Steven was in Beach City getting fry bits. Amethyst was pretty much doing errands for random engine components. And Garnet was rummaging through the millions of possible futures to this situation. She never could quite get to destroying the Cluster-in all of the futures, it was always the same set; She got poofed, she got separated, they failed, she didn't go on the mission for a huge amount of reasons, the drill broke halfway and they never knew what happened to Earth, and they got abducted by Yellow Diamond.

And one single, mildly blurry future where she could see surviving and destroying the Cluster. Standing there, laughing and forcing back tears, with everyone tired, injured, and dirty. But none of them minded that-not even Pearl. The world was saved. That was all that mattered.

That piece of tech wasn't really broken. But it would have malfunctioned and killed them. All of the math problems she did, she was terrified that she would do one wrong and kill everyone with that tiny, insignificant mistake. Every time she helped check over engine parts, she made sure that everything was perfect, far past what Pearl did.

She was scared, just like always. She was always nervous from the potential futures she saw. But did that show? Of course not. She seemed shaken occasionally, sure, and she seemed scared every couple years, but that didn't matter. She really did care about her teammates-and it terrified her to see their deaths over and over again until she was almost numb to the pain.

Later that night, when the drill was almost completed, Pearl and Peridot took a short break. Pearl came up to her, and asked after a moment of silence;

"Garnet...what's the probability of success?"

This took Garnet by surprise. She looked up at the night sky for a moment, and then looked over at the small, worried, and tired gem beside her.

Garnet forced a smile. This was why she covered all of her eyes-she wanted to show what she wanted to show-not what she actually felt. She couldn't discourage her. Not like this. It would only lead to devastation for the Crystal Gems...for Earth.

"Fifty-fifty shot."

* * *

 **Please R &R!**


	3. Just Fuse

**Short one this time.**

 **Anonms: Uh...what potato?**

* * *

Pearl stared blankly at the ground. The battle around her was almost over. Bubbled gems dotted the battlefield. Even more were shattered. Retreating battleship covered the darkened sky. Shadows stretched long in the twilight. Pearl, Rose, Garnet, and dozens of other Crystal Gems stood in the empty, forlorn battlefield. The barren ground was hard-packed and scarred, with a couple tiny strawberry plants nearby.

"Pearl."

She looked up. A four-armed, ten foot tall fusion with long but poofy hair stood beside her. She smiled faintly. "Garnet. How come you're still fused? The battle's over. We're safe."

Garnet shook her head, all three eyes directly down and to the right. "No...it's a decoy retreat. I already told Rose Quartz. You need to find someone to pair up with, just in case.

Pearl looked around. Everyone was fused or still dancing as ground troop slid stealithy closer. Everyone except...

"But there's no one who isn't already fused..." Pearl trailed off as she spotted curly, pink hair and a white dress at the edge of the field, looking over the fires that still burned. "Except Rose. And there's no hope that I could..."

Garnet laughed. "Are you kidding? Rose thinks you're great." Pearl looked down at the ground again, her eyes closing halfway. Garnet's expression softened as she crouched down and gently placed her thumb on Pearl's shoulder. Pearl flinched at the cold touch of Sapphire's gem. "Look...Just talk to her. It'll work out." Garnet cocked her head to one side, smiling and narrowing her eyes. "Or do you not trust me about the future?"

Pearl smiled back. "I guess you're right. Erm, you always are."

Garnet stood up. "True. Now talk to her. She won't mind."

She nodded, turned, and darted for Rose. Huge fusions looked down in surprise as her poofy sleeves brushed their hands, and as her spear scratched their ankles. It felt like an eternity until she reached Rose.

"Erm...Rose Quartz?"

Rose spun around. "Who-Oh! Pearl. Yes?"

Pearl swung her foot slightly, mumbling. "Um...well...since Homeworld is coming back, and it's better for Gems to fuse, and everyone else is already fused, I thought we could...um...er, if not, I-"

"No, no! It's fine! Really. I don't mind at all."

Pearl looked up in shock.

"Really?"

Rose smiled, her eyes shining faintly. "Yes. They're coming right now, so shall we...?"

"Um, yes."

They stepped out. Their dance was swift, and their fusion was small, but it didn't really matter. Pearl could feel Rainbow Quartz's sheer power radiating from her two Gems.

Rainbow Quartz smiled. She could do this. Invading army numbering in the thousands? Not a problem.


	4. Just a Bad Dream

Fire lit the world. Garnet was alone in a miasma of heat. The shattered Gems of her loved ones lay on the ground before her. She was standing, but she was on the verge of collapse. She was crying, but she made no sound.

She had lost friends before. She had lost herself before. She had Seen the deaths of her friends before. But not like this. Never like this.

She could feel fire engulfing her. Her Gems began to heat to an alarming degree. This wasn't even fire anymore. This was the blood of the Earth, magma. Hotter than she had ever felt before. It bothered her. Her Gems began to deform. Agony seared through her body.

Garnet didn't care. As long as she had herself, and Ruby and Sapphire had each other, everything was okay...right?

Someone grabbed her hand. Someone clothed in layer upon layer of protective material. Someone pulled her out. Roused her from this state of frozen fear. She mutely followed them into a ship, showing no emotion. They left with alarming speed. Realization dawned upon her the second she looked through a window at the Earth.

Red cracks turned the blue planet into unsafe hell. This wasn't the Cluster. It was Homeworld developing yet another geo-weapon.

This was the end. Homeworld was destroying an entire Planet for their own selfish desires. Armageddon, in every sense of the word. Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse? Come on. There's plenty of room. After all, the seas were boiling. The land was broken. The Moon was destroyed. There was no hope for the Planet she had grown to love. She closed her eyes. What was the point? Earth was beyond repair. Organic Life had finally, after millions of years of hanging on, been destroyed.

Her Gems were shattered from behind. It didn't matter.

 _I'm sorry..._

* * *

"Garnet?"

She lifted her uncovered eyes to face Steven's dark ones, filled with worry. That's right-Steven had dragged them into another slumber party. She was sitting in the corner, knees drawn up to her chest. Pearl was laying on her back in a deep, dreamless sleep with Amethyst flopped over her stomach. Peridot was curled up like a cat next to Lion. The only thing wrong was the fact that Steven looked terrified.

"St-Steven?"

Shit. Her facade was cracking again.

Steven put his tiny right hand over her long-fingered one. "Are you okay? Your hands were shaking and you looked like you were having, like, a horrible dream..."

Garnet turned her face to the side. "I guess..." To her surprise, Steven scooted over swiftly, looked her straight in the eyes. "No, really. You looked terrified. I've never seen you that scared. Please. What happened?"

She hesitated. Why was she so hesitant to tell people about herself? It made no sense. She took a deep breath. "The apocalypse. Not caused by the Cluster, since we already..." She straightened her legs out somewhat. Why was she telling him this? He was young. Naive. More emotionally fragile than she had ever been...

Steven's eyes widened, his voice shaking. "Futurevision? Do you think that could really-"

"No! I-I mean, it was impossible. I think it was just some residual fear from the war. It hasn't even been that long..." She was surprised to suddenly feel Steven's hand next to her eye. She turned to face him fully once more. He looked just as worried. "You were crying a little..."

Garnet stiffened for a moment. She couldn't let herself break down. Not here. Not now. She forced a smile, even though she knew that her eyes told a completely different story. "I'm okay, Steven. Dreams can't hurt anybody." She reached out, enveloping the small, scared boy into a hug. He spoke, his voice muffled by her shoulder. "Just a bad dream..."

Steven probably knew she was lying. She was badly shaken. She was on the verge of collapse. Steven squeezed her tightly-he knew. She really was a terrible liar. She could fell herself shaking a little, holding back what she really felt. After a moment, she finally found the right thing to say.

"Don't worry. God's in his Heaven, all's right with the World."

* * *

 **Anyone catch the reference to Eva? And yes. I wrote this listening to the saddest songs I know. Coughcoughdemonsfitsthisalotcoughcough  
**

 **Please R &R!**


	5. Something She Hides

What was that melody?

Pearl looked through the high, pointed arch into Sapphire's room. Garnet was standing alone, humming a quiet melody. She had heard before-once on the hand ship, and twice during the war. She found it strangely fascinating that despite all the songs Garnet had forgotten, this was the one she remembered. She didn't get it-why was this so influential? It was just a song.

This memory faded swiftly, within a few hours. She had been going up to try and apologize for what she had done two days before-but she couldn't bear to inturrupt her during that moment.

She went out to try and find Peridot. She was gone for a few days. Steven and Amethyst seemed relieved to see her-Garnet seemed painfully cold and emotionless. It surprised Pearl when Garnet said she was oing with Greg and Steven. This wasn't like her. She normally would've smiled, wished them luck and waved goodbye. She did smile-but something seemed forced. Nobody has moodswings like that. Time like these were when Pearl wished Garnet didn't wear her glasses.

When they returned, it was clear something had happened. Amethyst couldn't get a straight answer from Steven-it was always _She had a hard time_ , or _Uh, I don't think she'd like me to say._ It was sweet of him, really.

And then they went to the abandoned ship. When they fell into that room, she really thought they'd die. Oh, why was she was such an idiot?

 _I'm not as strong as you think._

What was she saying? She was amazing. Unified, strong, kind...what more could you ask for? 

_I fell apart over this. I came undone._

No...did she? Did Pearl cause her to...?

 _You are your own gem._

"...I understand."

Garnet probably didn't know how much those five words meant. To her, it was a statement of truth. To Pearl, it was something she had never heard. Not once in her nine-thousand-year lifespan, had she ever been treated like that. Not even by Rose.

That night, she went back to Sapphire's room to try and find Garnet. She was there, sitting on an outcropping, singing a wordless song. The same melody from before, quietly echoing throughout the blue cave.

After a moment, Garnet seemed to notice that she wasn't alone. She fell silent immediately, and jumped down onto the ground in front of Pearl.

"What is it, Pearl?"

Pearl looked at the ground for a moment, realizing from Garnet's tone that she was still having a hard time.

"Thank you."

She looked up at Garnet for a moment, then excused herself quietly, that same melody stuck in her head. She didn't mind, though. It was more than just a song to Garnet though. It meant something deeper. Pearl didn't even know if she was fully aware of her singing.

They didn't really know Garnet, and they probably never would. It didn't matter, though. She would always be there. And she would always forgive you eventually, even if it took a thousand years.


End file.
